Longtime developer Gary Hasson is working to breathe new life into a Winter Garden property that for decades played an important role in one of the largest citrus operations in the county.
Hasson, owner of Crown Property Holdings, is transforming 3.7 acres consisting of 1061, 1063 and 1065 Tildenville School Road — and its five existing buildings — into a mixed-use development with entertainment, office, retail, restaurant and meeting space called the Old Packing House. He bought the land in May 2018 for about $2.1 million.
“When I saw this building, I saw immediately this was going to be an amazing market and mixed-use development,” he said. “And I also wanted to have a great family-oriented space and I wanted to keep the historical significance of the old packing house.
“I come from Orange County, California, and my family was in the citrus industry over in California, so I was very familiar with the citrus industry and always had very fond memories of it.”
The packing house was built in 1909 and used by the South Lake Apopka Citrus Growers Association. The organization was a collective of farmers attracted to fertile land near the shores of Lake Apopka. At one point, the group oversaw the largest citrus operation in Orange County, but in the early 1990s processing at the facility was phased out.
When Hasson says the project has been years in the making, he means it.
City commissioners unanimously approved plans for the first time during their Dec. 12, 2019 meeting. He said work got underway, “and then COVID hit and everything went askew.”
A rendering of what the east side of Winter Garden’s old citrus packing plant will look like after renovations are completed. The properties that make up the development are located at 1061, 1063 and 1065 Tildenville School Road. Developer Gary Hasson plans to convert the five existing buildings into a mixed-use project. (Courtesy of City of Winter Garden)
Because of the pandemic, necessary supplies became scarce and costs skyrocketed, he said. Plus, many eateries wanting to become tenants were having problems because no one was coming into their restaurants.
“We just decided, you know what, let’s wait until it’s the right time again, when supplies are adequate, when prices are down again and when tenants are in better economic shape,” Hasson said. “So that’s why we waited as long as we did.”
On Jan. 22, a slightly different roster of city commissioners again unanimously approved the site plans — but with little discussion this time aside from Mayor John Rees pointing out, “It’s been a long time.”
Hasson said the plans approved last month are the same as in 2019, but the sewer and drainage portions had to go through the approval process again. Other work has been underway in the main building for at least a year, he said.
Bikers ride along the West Orange Trail on the northern side of Winter Garden’s old citrus packing plant in this rendering of what it will look like after renovations are completed by developer Gay Hasson. The properties that make up the development are located at 1061, 1063 and 1065 Tildenville School Road. (Courtesy of City of Winter Garden)
The main building has two floors and about 52,000 square feet of space, while the outbuildings range from 626 to 3,780 square feet — and he’s still deciding what will occupy them.
Hasson said the eastern half of the first floor of the main building — “it’s as big as a football field” — will feature eateries, art galleries and community-oriented retailers with office space upstairs. The western half will include a marketplace (for goods and services), a florist, a bike shop, a pilates studio, a grocer, the events center (for community meetings, classes and entertainment) and a natural history museum showcasing his collection of fossils and minerals amassed over most of his life.
“I’ve got some amazing fossils up right now in the building, and then I’ve got more that I’m going to be putting up,” he said. “I’ve got the backbone, a whole series of backbones, from one of the largest North American long-neck dinosaurs.”
The site plan for the Old Packing Plant project in Winter Garden. The property is owned by Gary Hasson of Crown Property Holdings and the plan was prepared by RCE Consultants. (Courtesy of the City of Winter Garden)
Hasson said he’s currently taking applications from prospective tenants by email but won’t make decisions for about three months. He expects to have work on the property completed in about six months, and then it’s just a matter of filling it with tenants — although he’s not worried about that.
“I’ve had so many people contacting us,” he said. “I want to get the best eateries I can in there, and the best tenants for the community, because this is a community center.”
Site plans show 132 parking spaces for cars and 35 for golf carts. The property will have bicycle racks, areas with outdoor seating and a sidewalk along the road. The development abuts a section of the 22-mile-long West Orange Trail along the northern side.
The property is designated Commercial (COM) on the city’s Future Land Use Map and zoned PCD (Planned Commercial Development). Larry Poliner, with RCE Consultants in Altamonte Springs, is civil engineer on the project and Studio 407 of Orlando is the architect.
Landscaping will feature a variety of trees (Florida flame red maple, live oak and allee elm, red crape myrtle and southern magnolia), shrubs (variegated ginger, red bougainvillea, dwarf firebush, muhly grass, podocarpus and sweet viburnum), ground cover (flax lily and Confederate jasmine) and floratam St. Augustine turf.
Hasson said he’s trying to keep the development as green as possible — inside and out.
“We’ve got 500 solar panels on the roof right now to provide us our energy, and the restaurants that go in there we’re going to ask them to keep everything recyclable,” he said. “We’re going to have healthy eating alternatives. Hopefully, we’ll get a taphouse in there so that any of the local people when they want to grab a beer will have a selection of craft beers.”
Brian Bell can be reached at bbell@orlandosentinel.com. Have a tip about Central Florida development? Email Newsroom@GrowthSpotter.com. Follow GrowthSpotter on Facebook and LinkedIn.
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